The British Empire and the ‘special relationship’
After David Cameron’s recent political gaffe, in which he referred to Britain as the ‘junior partner’ to the US, in regards to the transatlantic alliance, it raises the question of what the so-called ‘special relationship’ has truly represented in history.
The close alliance between Britain and the US was something of a ‘forced’ affair during the Second World War. It was essentially a marriage of convenience between two great world powers, who knew that they could not defeat Nazism unless they worked together. It led to what Winston Churchill coined the ‘special relationship’, which over time became an increasingly one-sided arrangement rather than a mutual bond.
During the 19th century, Britain ruled the waves. It controlled over a quarter of the world’s land surface, occupied the most powerful and influential navy in the world and dominated the global stock markets. Not to mention the education, government, and doctor jobs that were exported. The American continent was an enormously important source of trade for the British Empire. The trade between the two countries not only facilitated Britain’s imperial interests, but also helped fund America’s industrial revolution during the course of the 19th century. If there was ever a special relationship between the two countries, it was then. However, as Britain’s decolonisation ensued during the 20th century, the United States became ever powerful as its economy, military, cultural prowess and political eminence developed during the Great Boom of the 1920s but more especially after 1945.
After 1945, Britain was forced to sell of much of its colonial possessions due to crippling bankruptcy. There was a growing need to rebuild the country’s infrastructure as quickly and as cheaply as possible, which is what resulted in the most radical and rapid decolonisation of any major empire in history. Britain granted independence to India in 1947, which was considered the jewel of the British Empire. What followed was the creation of Pakistan through a deadly partition, in which many hundreds of thousands died in one of the most violent political events of the century.
Later, in 1956, the United States humiliated Britain and France when it forced the two countries to withdraw from the Suez region, which was a valuable colonial reserve. Since then, Britain has remained a steadfast supporter of the Anglo-American alliance, despite the lack of enthusiasm on the other side of the spectrum. It is clear that David Cameron is not ashamed to be a permanent supporter of the US, however he is less than willing to criticise it when there may be an incentive to do so.
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